1. Hamlet and Juliet Get A New Toy A story of exploration and discovery

2. O nce upon a time, not very long ago, I wrapped the top post of our railing so the cats wouldn’t scratch it. As I wrapped it, I put a toy in there for the cats. Anyone who says cats don’t talk has never watched when cats are faced with a situation like this.

3. Dramatis Personae Hamlet, 4 years old Juliet, 18 months

4. The toy…ready for exploration by the cats.

5. Hamlet: What the hell is that?

6. Juliet: I dunno. I’ve never seen anything like it!

7. Hamlet: Me either. Climb up there and see what the damned thing is. Juliet: Who? Me?

8. Juliet: It looks OK from here. Hamlet: Get a closer look.

9. Juliet: Figures. I’ve gotta be the one to crawl up here. Hmm. Looks OK from here.

10. Juliet: Hey, Ham. This thing looks OK. Pretty cool, in fact.

11. Hamlet: Good job, Juliet. Now if he’d put the camera away and get out of here, we could play with it.